page_title: The Anvil, Basingstoke
hierarchical_section_title: The Anvil, Basingstoke
caption_attribution_description: Basingstoke Anvil, southern side and bar balcony.
context_page_description: The Anvil is a concert hall and a performing arts centre in the town of Basingstoke in Hampshire, UK.
  Built on a site originally set aside for the third phase of Basingstoke's shopping centre, The Anvil was built to tackle what was then seen as a 'cultural desert' in the Basingstoke area. The aim of the project was to raise the profile of the Borough and to establish it as a major regional centre with a range of first class facilities. Twenty years since its opening, it is still not exactly clear how effectively these aims have been fulfilled, but the Hall seems quite popular within the local area. The building's name reflects its unusual shape, particularly when seen from the western approach as it vaguely resembles the horn end of a traditional blacksmith's anvil. It has also been likened to the bow of a ship.
  The hall plays host to a variety of touring productions, stand up comedians, live bands, opera, and most famously classical music.
context_section_description: The Anvil is a concert hall and a performing arts centre in the town of Basingstoke in Hampshire, UK.
  Built on a site originally set aside for the third phase of Basingstoke's shopping centre, The Anvil was built to tackle what was then seen as a 'cultural desert' in the Basingstoke area. The aim of the project was to raise the profile of the Borough and to establish it as a major regional centre with a range of first class facilities. Twenty years since its opening, it is still not exactly clear how effectively these aims have been fulfilled, but the Hall seems quite popular within the local area. The building's name reflects its unusual shape, particularly when seen from the western approach as it vaguely resembles the horn end of a traditional blacksmith's anvil. It has also been likened to the bow of a ship.
  The hall plays host to a variety of touring productions, stand up comedians, live bands, opera, and most famously classical music. The hall is designed to be multi purpose, and has multiple stage formats that fit shows according to their needs, plus a removable proscenium to cater for more theatrical performances that require more than a standard 'black box' stage, notably opera and pantomime. The auditorium has adjustable seating and considered some of the finest acoustics of any concert hall in Europe. The acoustic design was by Richard Cowell of Arup Acoustics.
  There is a small second auditorium, The Forge, which primarily plays host to acoustic and folk acts.
caption: The Anvil, Basingstoke in 2008. View of the south side of the theatre from the footbridge over Churchill Way.
exif: {"Image Make": "Nokia", "Image Model": "N95 8GB", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "300", "Image YResolution": "300", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Centered", "Image ExifOffset": "140", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "3084", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "16126", "EXIF ExposureTime": "7/1000", "EXIF FNumber": "14/5", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "100", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2008:05:20 17:45:01", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2008:05:20 17:45:01", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "3579/500", "EXIF ApertureValue": "297/100", "EXIF LightSource": "Unknown", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, auto mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "28/5", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2592", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1944", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "1", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF GainControl": "None"}